Ernst Kyle, Griffin Georgia, Rose Monique S, Szabo Andrew, Watson Stuart, Bradfield Zoe
Department of Nursing and Midwifery Education and Research, King Edward Memorial Hospital, Subiaco, Australia.
Department of Nursing and Midwifery Education and Research, King Edward Memorial Hospital, Subiaco, Australia.
Women Birth. 2025 Jan;38(1):101851. doi: 10.1016/j.wombi.2024.101851. Epub 2025 Jan 2.
It is unknown whether the deployment of registered nurses to assist midwives in the provision of postnatal care eases the burden of workforce shortages.
The largest public maternity health service in Western Australia began employing registered nurses in 2022 to assist midwives with the provision of postnatal care on maternity wards in response to staffing shortages, exacerbated by COVID-19.
To explore midwives' and registered nurses' experiences of providing postnatal care on maternity wards together.
A descriptive cross-sectional design was employed. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected using a paper-based survey tool. Data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Content analysis was conducted on qualitative data.
70 staff participated (n= 58 midwives, n=12 nurses). Only 19.2 % of participants felt positively about their workload allocation. Most participants (62.7 %) reported a usual allocation of 6-7 mother-baby dyads to care for. Significantly more midwives preferred allocation by the shift coordinator than nurses; and significantly more nurses preferred 'team nursing' than midwives.
Strategic approaches are needed to improve recruitment and retention of midwifery workforce capable of responding to periods of acute demands across the full scope of midwifery practice. Guidance concerning nurses' scope of practice in the postnatal setting is necessary from a professional, medico-legal, governance and safety standpoint.
The deployment of registered nurses into postnatal wards may be of some benefit to midwives in the context of workforce shortages. Parameters must be set outlining what is within nurses' scope of practice in the postnatal care setting.
调配注册护士协助助产士提供产后护理是否能缓解劳动力短缺的负担尚不清楚。
西澳大利亚最大的公共孕产妇保健服务机构于2022年开始雇佣注册护士，以应对因新冠疫情加剧的人员短缺问题，协助助产士在产科病房提供产后护理。
探讨助产士和注册护士共同在产科病房提供产后护理的经历。
采用描述性横断面设计。使用纸质调查工具收集定量和定性数据。使用描述性和推断性统计方法分析数据。对定性数据进行内容分析。
70名工作人员参与（n = 58名助产士，n = 12名护士）。只有19.2%的参与者对其工作量分配持积极态度。大多数参与者（62.7%）报告通常分配照顾6 - 7对母婴。与护士相比，明显更多的助产士更喜欢由轮班协调员进行分配；与助产士相比，明显更多的护士更喜欢“团队护理”。
需要采取战略方法来改善能够应对助产实践全范围内急性需求时期的助产劳动力的招聘和留用。从专业、医疗法律、管理和安全角度来看，有必要提供关于护士在产后环境中执业范围的指导。
在劳动力短缺的情况下，将注册护士调配到产后病房可能对助产士有一定益处。必须设定参数，明确护士在产后护理环境中的执业范围。
